Featuring inspirations from kigumi wood joinery design and hand-dusted platinum, each of these limited edition watches are a unique work of art.
Bringing a fusion of ancient Japanese artistry and modern engineering to the wrists of elite collectors and timepiece connoisseurs, Casio will introduce a new member on November 13 to its flagship MR-G line in celebration of three decades since its inception in 1996. Priced at 1.1 million yen (around US$7,350), and limited to only 800 pieces worldwide, MRG-B2100HR-1A has its design centered around the theme of haruka, a Japanese concept conveying timeless strength and boundless duration.
At the heart of the watch’s artistry is kigumi, a traditional Japanese woodworking and architectural technique where timber is joined without nails, other metal fasteners, or adhesives. The woodworkers intricately carve joints that connect seamlessly and have no possibility of corrosion. Reinterpreting this into watchmaking, the dial forms an intricate, three dimensional lattice.
Above this marvel of construction, renowned metal leaf artist Hiroto Rakusho applied his craft by hand. Born in Kyoto’s Nishijin district, Rakusho is an officially designated Traditional Craftsman known for expanding Nishijin foil art onto global stages and contributing to digital archiving for cultural preservation.
Rakusho personally decorated each 3-D dial using sunago, a technique originating in the creation of picture scrolls and Buddhist texts, where platinum leaf is ground into a powder before being dusted over a surface. The delicate, uneven distribution of platinum creates a brilliance and deep gradation that exhibits itself uniquely on every single piece, guaranteeing that each watch has its own artistic fingerprint.
To mirror Rakusho’s artwork on the exterior, Casio applied structural color technology via ultra-short pulse lasers across the bezel and watchstrap. The micron-level laser texturing mimics the natural iridescence seen on butterfly wings and mineral crystals, producing a colorful beauty that changes depending on the viewing angle.
Complementing this is Casio’s advanced metal construction: an octagonal bezel, based on the popular MRG-B2100, crafted from 27 individually polished components, alongside premium COBARION (a cobalt-chromium-molybdenum alloy about two times as hard as stainless steel, and which has a platinum shine) and DAT55G (a high-performance titanium alloy, around three times that of pure titanium) alloys that provide structural resilience.
By capturing the spirit of haruka, the MRG-B2100HR-1A unites Kyoto craftsmanship with modern engineering into an enduring piece of wearable art.
Related: Casio Online Store
Source, images: PR Times
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
